Minnie turner sellers



Patented Dec. 6, |898.

No. 6I5,579.

M. T. SELLERS.

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(Application med Aug. 1s, 189e.)v

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MINNIE TURNER SELLERS, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

DRESS-STIFFEN ER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 615,579, dated December 6, 1898.

Application filed August 18, 1898. Serial No. 688,887. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MINNIE TURNER SEL- LERS, of the city of New York, (Wood Haven, borough of Queens,) in the county of Queens and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Dress-Stitfener, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to a new article of manufacture consisting of a suitably-faced strip of stiifening material designed to be placed around the bottom or at desired points or places on a dress-skirt to cause the skirt to maintain its proper form. Stiffening devices comprising wire, reed, whalebone, or the like have been used, but they are found objectionable because the wires or the like are easily broken and the projecting ends are liable to tear or otherwise damage the clothing of the wearer.

It is the object of my invention to provide a stiener in which the above objections are obviated, or, in other words, to provide a stiffener that shall have all the required rigidity, but which may bend or flex without breaking.

I will describe a dress-stiifener embodying my invention, and then point out the novel features in the appended claim.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings; forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views.

Figure l is a sectional elevation of a dressskirt, showing the stiffener embodying my invention as applied thereto. Fig. 2 shows a portion of a stiffener with the two parts separated at one end to clearly show the construction. Fig. 3 is a section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 2; and Fig. 4 is a fragmentary view showing a slight modification, in which the stiffener is formed for the bottom of a dress-skirt.

The stiifener comprises a facing l of textile material, upon one side of which is secured the stiifening material 2, which consists of haircloth, preferably the French haircloth. As plainly shown in Fig. 3, this haircloth has one edge folded upon and extended partly across the main portion of the material and secured by a line of stitches, which line of stitches, together with edge lines of stitches, serve to secure the haircloth to the facing. This partial folding of the material provides for a greater rigidity at one edge than at the other, which will cause a skirt to hang much better in its vertical lines, as the thicker portion is at the lower edge and maintains a greater weight of the skirt than does the upper section of the stiffener.

The stiffener is designed to be attached to the inner side of a skirt, as plainly indicated in Fig. l-that is, in this figure it is shown as extended partially around the skirt Inaterial and at the back thereof. At the bottom, however, the stiffener is somewhat differently constructed, as indicated in Fig. et, in which the facing 3,consistin g of velveteen or similar fabric, has its edges folded over the stiffening material 2 and stitched thereto in such manner that both the outer and inner surfaces of the stiffening material are covered by the facing.

When this device is fastened to the skirt material 4, its lower edge will project slightly below the bottom edge thereof, thus forming a protector for the bottom of a skirt.

It is found that this haircloth stiifening material may be bent or folded without breaking, and that after being released from the bend or the like it will immediately spring back to its original form.

Havingv thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent As a new article of manufacture, a stiener for a dress-skirt, consisting of a facing of fab ric, and a strip of haircloth secured to the facing and having one edge folded upon and ex tended partly across the main portion of the material, whereby a greater rigidity is provided at one edge of the completed article than at the other, substantially as specified.

y MINNIE TURNER SELLERS.

fitnessesr JNO. M. RITTER, C. R. FERGUSON. 

